Logging into your new WordPress website

To log in to your site, you will need the log in details sent to you when you set up your WordPress installation.

Go to: http://yourdomainname.com/wp-login.php.

Enter your username and password. Then click â€œLoginâ€. This will bring you to the Dashboard where youâ€™ll create the look of your site, add content, and begin to make your mark on the world through your website.

The WordPress Administration Dashboard & Bar

The DashboardIn your WordPress Administration Dashboard you will find various dashboard components,including a link to your site, an overview of everything in your installation, such as the Content (posts, pages, categories and tags) and the Discussion elements (number of comments, how many have been approved, how many are pending and how many spam comments there are). This section will also tell you what theme you are currently using and what version of WordPress you are using.

You will also find a section on Comments, letting you know what recent comments have recently been posted to your blog. This will give you an overview of the comment and give you several options for what you may do with the comment.

In the dashboard there are also sections letting you know what incoming links you have, recent plugin news, and other WordPress news. You may also have additional sections appear in the dashboard depending on what plugins you have installed.

On the upper right side of the dashboard you will see QuickPress. You can use this section to create blog posts directly from this page. Most likely you will choose to create a post using the instructions in an upcoming section of this ebook because you will have more editing options, but you do have the option of working from this screen as well.

If you would like to customize what appears on your dashboard page, select â€œScreen Optionsâ€ from the top right corner (just below where it says â€œHowdyâ€). Simply check the modules or sections you would like to appear on your dashboard, and uncheck those you do not wish to see.

Another important area of your WordPress Dashboard, the area you will usethe most, is the menu along the left hand side. Here you will find links to theareas where you will add posts and pages, add media, moderate comments,access your theme, modify the appearance of your site (such as the menu orwidgets), add, remove or update plugins, manage users, and access tools andsettings.

You may have additional options in this menu depending on what plugins youhave added. For example, in this image you can see a link for â€œBackupBuddyâ€because BackupBuddy is installed on this site.

The Admin Bar

The WordPress Admin bar appears above your site if you are logged in to your WordPress dashboard. This is to allow for easy editing and site management directly from your site without having to jump back and forth between the front-end (your site) and the back-end (your WordPress dashboard). It provides some handy shortcuts to access parts of your WordPress installation without having to find them in the left hand navigation.

Remember, visitors to your site will not be able to see this admin bar because they are not logged in to your WordPress dashboard. If you prefer not to have it visible even to yourself, you can modify the setting under Users > Your Profile. Simply uncheck the box next to â€œShow Toolbar when viewing siteâ€ and click â€œUpdate Profileâ€ at the bottom of the page.